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Crostini with Arugula Pesto and Goat Cheese

I love arugula. It’s bright and fresh and super peppery. Its one of those ingredients that sways my menu choices, I see arugula and I am immediately intrigued by whatever it is. Its kind of the same thing with eggs, put a fried egg on it and I pretty much will eat anything. In fact you could definitely transform this little recipe into an open face sandwich situation, throw a fried egg on top and call it lunch.

An extra little bonus with this is that the recipe definitely makes more pesto than you really need for this appetizer. So you could actually serve this at your next party and use it to make your self that sandwich for lunch the next day. Or throw it on a pizza or pasta instead of the standard pesto. But as it is this is a great easy party appetizer. You can make it more or less way ahead of time, it doesn’t need to be served hot, and you can just pick it up and take a bite. No fuss, no muss, no forks. Done.

Now you have your easy, peasy party dish done, all that’s left to do is pop open that bottle of wine. And with this appetizer you are going to want to grab a nice cool bottle of Sauvignon Blanc. Sauvignon Blanc and goat cheese is one of the most classic pairings out there. The bight acidity and the little bit of herbal greenness of the Sauvignon Blanc really compliment the tart, rich, tangy goat cheese. Trust me, it is a classic for a reason. Sauvignon Blanc also pairs nicely with a little bit of spice so its also really lovely with that peppery arugula.

Ingredients:

½ cup chopped walnuts

2 cups packed Arugula

1 garlic clove, chopped

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan

Kosher salt, to taste

½ cup olive oil

Baguette

Goat Cheese, softened

Directions:

Put the walnuts, Arugula, garlic, and Parmesan in a food processor. Pulse until all the large pieces are mostly broken down and everything is starting to come together. While the food processor is running drizzle in the olive oil slowly, watching it to check for the consistency you want. Because this is going to be a topping for a crositni you don’t want it to be too thin and I actually like to leave a few small chunks in it. However, if you wanted to make this and use it on pasta, which would be delicious as well, you certainly could. Just add about ½ cup more olive oil to bring it to more of a saucy consistency.

Meanwhile, slice the baguette, brush the pieces with olive oil, and lightly toast them in a 400°F oven.

Once the bread has cooled slightly spread with the Arugula pesto and sprinkle with goat cheese.

Put the walnuts, Arugula, garlic, and Parmesan in a food processor. Pulse until all the large pieces are mostly broken down and everything is starting to come together. While the food processor is running drizzle in the olive oil slowly, watching it to check for the consistency you want. Because this is going to be a topping for a crositni you don’t want it to be too thin and I actually like to leave a few small chunks in it. However, if you wanted to make this and use it on pasta, which would be delicious as well, you certainly could. Just add about ½ cup more olive oil to bring it to more of a saucy consistency.

Meanwhile, slice the baguette, brush the pieces with olive oil, and lightly toast them in a 400°F oven.

Once the bread has cooled slightly spread with the Arugula pesto and sprinkle with goat cheese.